I'm a little late in responding to this, but this is an interesting subject for me. I know the tendency is to think of the "bug out on foot" scenario, or grabbing something on short notice, but with two small kids, I'm also trying to expand to the scenario where I have several hours notice, such as a hurricane evacuation. I want to start planning out what I would load into the car on short notice that will support our growing family for a week or longer evacuation, and while I have a number of "tough boxes" or other hard plastic trunks, I think some types of bags are much better suited for this scenario.
If money is no object (I know, it always is), the Sherpa Deployment Bag from Force Protector Gear has served me well. Army units have been buying these for deploying soldiers in recent years to replace the old school duffle bag, and while I wasn't fortunate enough to have been issued one, I bought one for myself before my current trip overseas because I needed a big bag anyway and decided it would serve me well in terms of personal preparation. For full disclosure, a friend of mine works for the company, but I learned about the bags and wanted to acquire one before he went to work there - I had just been holding out hoping that I'd get issued one!
I bought a black one, so it would be a little more non-descript when traveling overseas that the various camo patterns or Coyote. The bag has thick padding on the sides, sturdy rollers, handles for lifting on each end, and a decent loop at one end for towing / dragging the bag on its rollers. The inside of the lid has a number of mesh organizer pockets. It also includes backpack straps in case you're crazy enough to carry it that way (I removed those straps and stored them).
On the downside, aside from it being really expensive, it's a heavy bag (13 lbs empty) so it's really only good for moving to and from a car (leaving and arriving at your destination). However, loaded with clothes, baby supplies, etc., my wife and I should be able to lift it into the back of an SUV and scoot out of town. I'm going to take a look at keeping it pre-packed with essential clothes, blankets, etc. in case we need to leave home in a hurry.
I don't necessarily want to advocate for this particular bag, because of the price, but I think it's a good idea to consider this type of large roller bag as part of your "third line" of gear to have prepared for contingencies when you have more time and the capability (i.e. a car) to take more with you.
Dave
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Originally Posted by 3ACR_Scout
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